As they almost always are, big things are afoot at Mark Ryan Winery. Most notably, the winery recently moved to a new production facility in Kirkland. For a growing winery, the new spot provides an abundance of space – something it has never truly had. The facility was designed with energy efficiency in mind. “This is a commitment to do the right thing,” said proprietor Mark McNeilly. Meanwhile Mark Ryan navigated the cool, challenging 2011 vintage admirably. While I don’t expect the 2011 wines to be quite as long lived as their stellar 2010 cousins, they are every bit as delicious.

The 2011 vintage releases from Kerloo Cellars are across the board as good or better than any that the winery has produced to date, particularly impressive considering the challenges of the vintage. Winemaker Ryan Crane continues by and large to work with the same fruit sources with these wines, Les Collines Vineyard in the Walla Walla Valley and StoneTree on the Wahluke Slope. However, the 2011 Walla Walla Valley Syrah includes some Blue Mountain fruit – a first – after a 2010 frost damaged the 2011 crop at Va Piano.

Kerloo Cellars Syrah Les Collines Walla Walla Valley 2011 $70(Exceptional) An aromatically arresting wine with pure, vivid notes of huckleberry, plum, white pepper, and high toned herbs. The palate is a panoply of fruit and herb flavors with a silken feel, displaying exquisite balance and length. It’s tart and all about elegance and fruit expression. Best the winery has made to date by a good stretch. NB: Club wine. 100% Syrah. Les Collines Block 30. 13.6% alcohol. 69 cases produced. Sample provided by winery.

Kerloo Cellars Grenache Upland Vineyard Snipes Mountain 2011 $46
A direct and appealing wine with a cornucopia of fruit including raspberry, strawberry, cherry, pomegranate, and orange peel accented by floral notes. The palate is pure silk with a light elegant styling and an extended finish. 100% Grenache. 13.7% alcohol. 34 cases produced. (Wine Enthusiast review to be published in an upcoming issue)

EFESTE

These red releases from EFESTE – which include the 2011 Rhone-style wines and 2010 Bordeaux-style wines – include some interesting additions. The 2010 Upright Merlot is an attempt to stand the variety back up straight after it was turned Sideways ten years ago. What better way to do it than with Klipsun Vineyard fruit?

EFESTE Upright Merlot Red Mountain 2010 $39(Excellent/Exceptional) With the name a play on the movie ‘Sideways’ this 100% Klipsun Vineyard wine looks to stand the variety up straight. It rises up out of the glass with cranberry, exotic spice, fresh, briary raspberry and kisses of oak spice. It’s wound up very tightly right now with dense, chewy tannins with a drawn out feel. Give three to four years. 100% Merlot. Aged 20 months in French oak (50% new). Klipsun Vineyard. 14.80% alcohol. 571 cases produced.

Eight Bells Winery is excelling at making high quality wines at value prices compared to their peers. Two wines in particular that stand out in this regard are the 2011 Sangiovese ($20) and 2011 Red Willow Syrah ($28).

Sangiovese is a bit of a struggler in Washington without the trail of successes that many varieties have had in the state. From the 2011 vintage, the Eight Bells offering drinks almost more like a cool climate Grenache in many respects with pepper, raspberries, and herbs. There’s a real sense of freshness to this wine, which truly demands a place at the dinner table. In terms of the Syrah, a high quality Red Willow offering at under $30? Yes please.

Auclair Winery is a winery on the way up with each vintage seeming to improve on the last. The 2011 vintage wines continue that track record with two single vineyard wines from Artz Vineyard, one modeled on a Left Bank Bordeaux-style and one modeled on a Right Bank style.

Auclair Winery Right Blend Red Wine Artz Vineyard Red Mountain 2011 $45(Excellent/Exceptional) A moderately aromatic wine with wet stone, dark raspberries, licorice, cassis, dark cherry, floral notes, pencil lead, and wood spice. There’s a sensuous, soft, textured, palate coating feel to the fruit flavors that glide along to a lingering, cinnamon filled finish. A gorgeous wine that will only improve with some additional time in the bottle and should have a very long life ahead of it. Give at least one to two years. 75% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc, and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. Aged in French oak (50% new). 14.3% alcohol. Sample provided by winery.

Auclair Winery Left Blend Red Wine Artz Vineyard Red Mountain 2011 $45(Exceptional) Locked up tightly with juicy black cherries, sweet herbal notes, briary ground berries, licorice, mineral notes, and wood spice. It’s densely flavored with abundant cherry notes that coat the palate from end to end, buffeted by firm but not unyielding tannins, before hanging around for a long, fruit filled finish with a touch of cinnamon. Though drinking well now, give it some time in the cellar to see it truly shine. 66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot and 17% Cabernet Franc. Aged in French oak (66% new). Sample provided by winery.

Buty Winery

The Buty Winery 2011 Merlot-Cabernet Franc is a thrilling wine. Aged in just a third new oak and coming in just under 14% alcohol, the emphasis is all on the elegant fruit flavors that still retain great depth and a supple, almost creamy feel. Among the more impressive wines to come out of this challenging vintage – though some may find it too light in style or perhaps too herbal for their tastes. But for those who enjoy lower alcohol wines and are not afraid to explore the savory, this is nirvana.

Buty 67% Merlot 33% Cabernet Franc Conner Lee Vineyard Columbia Valley 2011 $45(Exceptional) A moderately aromatic, intriguing wine with a medley of herbal notes that span the register – tomato leaf, tarragon, and bay leaf - while staying clear of the greener side of the spectrum with cherry and graphite providing complement and contrast. The palate is elegant in style, almost creamy in feel while still showing exquisite richness. Lingers on the finish. Some might find this wine a bit too light for their tastes as it pounds the hammer softly. Others will fall in love. 67% Merlot and 33% Cabernet Franc. Aged 15 months in French oak (33% new). 13.9% alcohol. 282 cases produced. Sample provided by winery.

Robert Ramsay Cellars is fully in the midst of exploring Rhone varieties in Washington. The latest releases include a rarely seen varietal Counoise from Red Heaven Vineyard (Red Mountain) and a southern Rhone-style blend, Le Mien.